


Caught in the Stars

by Nutella0Mutt



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Alternate Universe - Mythology, Celestial AU, Dragon Shiro (Voltron), Established Keith/Shiro (Voltron), Firebird Keith, Forbidden Love, M/M, Misunderstandings, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Nymph Lance, Orion: A Shklance Zine, Polyamory, Wishes, shklance - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-14
Updated: 2019-06-14
Packaged: 2020-05-07 13:39:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19210564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nutella0Mutt/pseuds/Nutella0Mutt
Summary: “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. My name is Shiro. You saved the one most dear to me so I wanted to thank you.”Lance pulled himself back onto the rock, and Shiro perched delicately next to him. “Y-you’re welcome. I mean, is he alright? Isn’t he a sun god?”“Keith is a firebird, yes. Thanks to you he wasn’t in the water for too long, and I had just enough time to get him to the Cloud Palace before the sunset.” Shiro took a step closer and rested clawed hands gently on Lance’s bare shoulders. “You saved his life. For that, I am eternally grateful.”Shiro was so close, too close, and Lance took a half-step backward, almost toppling off the rock. Shiro steadied him with another kind smile. “In return for your kindness, I can grant you one boon. Simply name it and it’s yours.”





	Caught in the Stars

**Author's Note:**

> Partnered with the amazing [@anaake_art](https://twitter.com/anaake_art) for the Orion Shklance Zine!
> 
>  
> 
> [Link to art on twitter](https://twitter.com/anaake_art/status/1113035595423629312)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

As the sun began to settle low in the sky, Lance serenely made his way to his usual rock. It was his favorite part of the day, and was followed by his second favorite event: the star rise. Like all the previous nights, this sunset did not disappoint. Dazzling oranges and piercing yellows sank among heavy blue and purple clouds, scattering rays of light all across the water.

Lance sighed, content. While he didn’t prefer salt water, Lance always made the trek from his lake along the river to get a perfect view of the sunset.

Lance was just a minor demigod, responsible for the smallest lake in the forest: Moss Lake. He was tasked to help wayward travelers, but so far none had come his way. So Lance busied himself by daydreaming and tending to his little lake. He listened to the trees, chatted with the flowers,  and sang with the wind. And when the sun started its descent, he would follow the river to the ocean.

The sun was nearly gone one day when something massive flew overhead. Lance darted into the water with a shriek. Deities had few enemies, save for one another. From the water, Lance could see a bright streak like a comet soar across the sky and splash into the ocean. Shocked, Lance moved quickly and was halfway there before thought caught up to him. It could be dangerous. But even as the thought crossed his mind he ignored it.

Strangely, as Lance approached, the water began hissing and bubbling, and steam started to rise. Then something broke the surface of the water frantically. A head and...were those wings? Lance was simply too stunned to act. It wasn’t until he heard the pained whimpers that he was moved to action. Careful of the strange appendages, Lance got an arm under and heaved up. The creature was hot and if it weren’t for the cold water Lance wouldn’t have been able to touch.

“Hold on, I got you,” Lance cooed, as he pulled their head above water and headed to the rock. The winged-being threw themselves on the rock, pulled themselves up, and collapsed on their stomach. It was a man in brilliant gold clothes, spawled and panting. Two magnificent wings laying sodden on either side of his dripping body.

Even as Lance watched, steam appeared and water quickly evaporated from his body. In just seconds the man was dried. Well, he wasn’t really a man. Golden wings, a burning tail, _talons_... What on earth was a creature of the sun doing in the water? The man heaved one last sigh, then turned to look at Lance. Black hair was plastered to his face, but didn’t hide his piercing violet eyes. Lance’s heart stopped in his chest; only the royal family members had violet eyes. This was a fully-fledged god!

Suddenly terrified for his life, Lance darted back into the water. He could be obliterated with a snap. Turned to dust with a look. No, Lance did not mess with gods. Lance quickly left for his little lake. Best to lay low for a bit. But even as he swam away he couldn’t help but sneak a look back at the beautiful creature he had saved.

Their eyes met. Right as the firebird made to stand up, a voice called from above, and Lance slipped away as another winged creature landed.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Lance debated about going to the next sunset, but in the end, he couldn’t help himself. It was the one highlight of his day, and the thought of not going was depressing.

Once the sun left the sky, Lance lingered on his rock. The stars were incredible tonight. Normally Lance would already back to his lake, and his view of the stars was blocked by dense trees. But tonight he indulged.

“Beautiful,” Lance whispered. The moon was huge and gorgeous, hanging so large in the sky Lance felt like he could touch. Lance was not a creature of the ocean, but even he felt the lunar call.

“It’s spectacular, isn’t it?”

Lance yelped and fell into the water with a splash. It took him a second to get his body working properly to breach the surface, but once he looked up, it was like the air had left his chest. Before him was another stunning god. Massive black wings buffered the air, and as Lance watched they sparkled and shined like millions of stars. Lance’s eyes then eyes fell on a broad, gleaming chest, then trailed up to a gentle smile and the horns on his head. A moon dragon.

“You’re the one who saved Keith yesterday, right?”

Lance was too stunned to speak, but it looked like the god wasn’t expecting much of one anyway. He continued.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. My name is Shiro. You saved the one most dear to me so I wanted to thank you.”

Lance pulled himself back onto the rock, and Shiro perched delicately next to him. “Y-you’re welcome. I mean, is he alright? Isn’t he a sun god?”

“Keith is a firebird, yes. Thanks to you he wasn’t in the water for too long, and I had just enough time to get him to the Cloud Palace before the sunset.” Shiro took a step closer and rested clawed hands gently on Lance’s bare shoulders. “You saved his life. For that, I am eternally grateful.”

Shiro was so close, too close, and Lance took a half-step backward, almost toppling off the rock. Shiro steadied him with another kind smile. “In return for your kindness, I can grant you one boon. Simply name it and it’s yours.”

That pulled Lance’s attention away from the warm hand on his arm. He looked up at Shiro’s face. “Wait, you can grant wishes? I didn’t know gods could do that.”

Shiro’s face seemed to turn pink, and he scratched at his nose. Lance noticed a scar across the bridge of it, but it only seemed to highlight his beauty. “Well, not exactly, but as a moon dragon, I can grant a favor to one who is deserving. A blessing of a sort.”

“Um, well alright. Cool.” Lance regretted it the moment it left his mouth, and Shiro raised an eyebrow. Lance felt like dying inside. He wasn’t sure how best to speak to a god. “Thanks, I mean, your godliness. Your holiness?”

Thankfully Shiro took mercy on him. “Shiro is fine. Do you know what you wish?”

Lance did. In his days alone in his little lake, Lance had dreamed up thousands of wishes. But he shook his head politely no.

“Well simply call for me when you think of it. I will come brave the day just for you. I must attend my duties now. Nice to meet you…?”

“Lance, of Moss Lake.”

“Lance. Until next time, then.”

And with that, he was gone in a powerful beat of his starry wings.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Over the next few days, Lance made a point of staying a few minutes after the sunset on the off chance that he’d get to see Shiro briefly. While Lance had the minor elemental restriction of needing to be near water, Shiro was tethered to the night sky. He woke with the sunset and had until the sunrise to complete his duties. Shiro was a moon dragon and was responsible for protecting the moon and watching over the stars. Even if Lance stayed up all night to be with Shiro, the dragon was too busy to idly sit and chat the night away. So Lance treasured the new minutes they had together.

“It must be frustrating to be so chained,” Lance accidentally let slip one evening.

Fortunately, Shiro just sighed. “There must be a balance in all things.” Lance gave him a flat look, and Shiro chuckled. “But yes, it is frustrating to see so little of my friends. I get just a few minutes each day.”

Ah yes, the firebird.

“Keith, right? How is he? What does he do, anyway?”

Stars began to twinkle in the dark sky, and Shiro stood from where he was sitting with Lance on their rock and stretched his wings. He was getting ready to leave.

“From what I hear, Keith’s doing alright. He won’t answer if I ask directly, but I think he is a messenger.  I know he’d rather be a sun warrior, though. Maybe if you find yourself with some free time in the day you can talk to him. I think he could use a friend. Until next time, dear Lance.”

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

It turned out the next day that Lance didn’t need to go looking for Keith. The firebird found him all on his own. The first rays of light were just hitting Lance’s lake when an angry voice startled him awake.

“Hey, you! Sprite! Get up!”

Lance yelped and startled, attempting to dive underwater to safety, but hands snatch him out of the water.

“Ah! No!”

“You- hold on! St-stop squirming!”

“No! Let me go!” Lance hissed and scratched and bit. His captor cried, but didn’t drop him. Lance was aware of huge wings pounding the hot air around them. He was so high up! Best to protect himself. When in trouble it was best to play dead. Lance went lax abruptly and the arms holding him scrambled for purchase. The person holding him couldn’t manage the dead weight and lost his grip. Lance fell and hit the water with a splash.

He heard a pained hiss above him. It was the firebird he had saved before, and he’d been splashed by the water.

“Oh! Keith!”

The firebird’s head rose from where he was clutching his arm, and his eyes burned like embers. He was pissed. If he was angry before, the water just made things worse.

“Why were you struggling?” Keith shouted.

Lance gaped. “What do you mean?’ You attacked me!”

Keith scoffed. “I was trying to talk to you but you were running away!”

“Alright wait, wait.” Lance raised his arms in surrender and pulled himself out of the lake to his feet, toes just in the water. “Let’s try this again. How can I help you, Keith?”

The firebird frowned and crossed his arms. He pinned Lance with a look that was clearly aggressive. “I wanted to know what your intentions were with Shiro. I’ve been watching you two.”

Ah of course. If Lance had any doubts before as to the relationship between the two, it was solidified now. Keith and Shiro were bonded, and Keith was being the attentive mate. Lance couldn’t help but feel for them. What a cruel fate they must suffer, destined to always be apart.

Lance plopped himself down in the shallow water, trying to make his body language as non-threatening as possible. “Nothing malicious I promise you. Shiro and I were just chatting. It seemed like he could use a friend, what with being so busy all the time. But I’m not here to get in between you two or anything.”

There was a beat where Lance wasn’t sure if that was enough to appease Keith, but surprisingly Keith crouched down next to him. He was mindful of the water and his clawed talons were just clear of the wet sand. Keith folded his wings up tight and seemed to try to take up as little space as possible.

“Is he...doing okay?” Keith hedged. “I hardly get to see him. I’m glad he’s got someone to talk to.” Keith risked poking the lake with a finger, and he and Lance watched the steam hiss at the contact.

Just as Lance thought. Keith was worried.

“Yeah, he seems to be doing great. He really misses you, though.”

The conversation lulled for a bit, and Lance thought that would be the end of it, but Keith slowly reached in the folds of his sash and pulled out a small parcel. “Hey, would you mind giving this to Shiro? I’ve tried to pass these on to him, but they’re always destroyed by others before he gets them.”

Lance looked at the item in his arms. It was a tied packet of what looked like letters. “Wait, you’re trusting me to give these to him?” The water sprite could hardly believe it. The firebird had attacked him just minutes ago.

Keith shrugged. “It wouldn’t be the first time. But I have a feeling you’re a nice guy.”

Before Lance could do much more than gape wordlessly, Keith was off.

Lance stared at the letters in his hands. The temptation was huge. He was dying to see what Keith was writing to someone like Shiro, but he knew better. The way Keith had spoken, so nonchalant. Like he _expected_ Lance to also betray him, that was what had Lance determined to do whatever he could to help those two. He put the letters somewhere safe until the sun set, and then swam with the packet over his head to keep it dry.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Lance knew he’d made the right choice when he handed the letters to Shiro that evening. The dragon was openly crying before he’d even gotten the string untied and the packet open.

“He said he’s been trying to leave these for me? I had no idea.” Shiro’s voice caught on a sob and Lance raised his head to watch the moon rise in an effort to give the dragon some privacy.

Shiro read the first line of the top letter and then closed it with a sniffle. He carefully placed all the letters in a pouch on his hip and pulled Lance in for a tight hug. “I can’t even begin to express how much this means to me, Lance. All that you’re doing for us. May the moon bless you.”

Wrapped up in Shiro’s arms, Lance took a second to reflect. Why was that he so drawn to these two? It wasn’t just that they were both stunning. Was it the bittersweet tragedy of their love? The two fighting to try and change their destinies? Two lovers so devoted even the thought of giving up was unheard of?

It was then that Lance realized, he was in love. He’d fallen for their story. Their dedication. The smart thing to do would be to wash his hands of it all. He shouldn’t have gotten tangled up and involved in someone else’s romance. But if he did that, Keith and Shiro would be left to their impossible fates. And that betrayal would likely hurt Lance more than playing messenger for them at the cost of his own happiness.

Shiro pulled away, gave Lance a soft look, and held a hand up to the sky. Not a second later a star came falling and landed in his palm. Shiro placed the star in Lance’s hand. Up close, it looked tiny. It was nothing but a speck of sand. But the healthy glow it gave was blindingly bright. Another impossibility.

“For my dear friend. Keep it safe for me, please.”

Then Shiro headed off and Lance was still awestruck, feet rooted to the rock. He was holding the heavens in the hands. As a demigod, and a water-bound one at that, Lance would never get to see the Cloud Palace or the majestic heavens Shiro and Keith traveled daily. Maybe that was part of the reason why he was so mesmerized by the sunset and the star rise. But in his hands was the impossible made real. A chance. If it was possible for him, why not them?

Suddenly, Lance what he wanted to wish for.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

Lance didn’t sleep that night, too eager for the morning fall and Keith’s presence. The firebird had barely touched down before Lance was shooting up from his lake, hands clasped around the treasure he was keeping safe.

“Keith! Look! I guarded it all night.”

“Huh?” Keith looked taken aback, but nonetheless, he came over and peered at Lance’s hands. “Is it from Shiro?”

Lance opened his fingers carefully and the starlight was not dimmed at all in the rising sun. He looked up, excited for the opportunity to give such an incredible gift. “Here, it’s for you. Shiro wanted you to have it!”

He held his hands out for Keith, but the firebird shook his head with a smile. “It’s not for me, Lance.”

Oh.

Oh no.

He had messed up!

“Ah, umm.” Lance felt foolish and shame crept across his face. Tears threatened to fall, but he stubbornly kept them at bay. Shiro would be so disappointed, and that hurt most of all. “Do you happen to know who it’s for? I don’t want to let Shiro down.”

Keith moved in close, smile still on his face, and carefully closed Lance’s fingers over the star. “I do know who it’s for. One of pure heart. Shiro has only ever given one before in his long life.”

Keith’s gaze was piercing. Lance couldn’t look away. The firebird moved closer, nearly embracing Lance, but he stayed just far enough for the heat to be bearable.

Lance stuttered. “Th-then who? It’s not yours?”

Keith’s voice was nearly a whisper then. “It’s not for me because I already have one. It’s a sign of Shiro’s devotion. A mark of love.”

The sweet words were soured by Keith’s grimace. “Not like this is much of an existence with us. Torn between day and night. But if you would have us…”

And Lance squeezed his eyes closed tight and thought hard of the moon dragon and his wish.

In a burst of light, Shiro appeared. He looked as startled as Keith.

“Lance! Are you-” Shiro’s eyes widened as he heard Lance’s plea. “Your wish!”

Shiro looked at Lance distraught. “Lance! No, I’m sorry, I can’t grant that one. Please, let me change it slightly. ”

Confused, Lance just nodded dumbly. He wanted Shiro and Keith to be together forever. Their love deserved that. What could Shiro possibly have in mind? Didn’t he want to be happy?

Before either Lance or Keith could get their thoughts together, Shiro had the two of them wrapped up in a blanket of stars and spirited away. The world burned hot and white.

 

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

 

The first thing Lance registered was the chill. Did he get sent to the arctic or something? Lance sat up and tried to get his bearings. He was on a beach, the setting sun casting long shadows across the sand. There was a groan to behind him and Lance froze as he turned to look. Keith was groggily sitting up. Wingless. No fire or tail or talons. Just gleaming skin.

“Keith! Are you alright?! Where are your wings?”

“Lance?” The former firebird raised a hand to his head. “Where’s Shiro?”

“I’m here. Are you two alright?” And there was Shiro, looking exhausted and mortal, but happy.

Lance and Keith quickly stumbled to him. Keith fell to his knees by his side and Lance plopped down gracelessly. Shiro lifted both his arms and the two curled in on each side.

“It was all thanks to you, Lance. You wished for Keith and me to be together, free, and I changed your wish so all three of us could. I didn’t…”

Shiro swallowed heavily, and Lance kissed his cheek.

“Thank you, Shiro. And you, too, Keith. You two showed me what true love and devotion was, and then invited me in.”

Keith gave Lance a kiss on the lips. “We love you, Lance.”

Shiro took his turn after Keith. “Let’s live the rest of our lives together. Happy and free.”

Lance was beaming with adoration and happiness as he had never felt as a demigod. He didn’t bother to stop the falling tears.

“Yes, happy and free!”

 

THE END

 

**Author's Note:**

> [Link to art on twitter](https://twitter.com/anaake_art/status/1113035595423629312)
> 
>  
> 
> ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
> 
> Thank you for reading. My dear friends, this is likely my final Voltron/Shklance piece ever. I will still write them for commissions, but my time in the Voltron fandom is done. I am no longer co-writing It's All in the Eyes, and the werewolf fic is on hold while my co-author is off in the airforce. :')
> 
> I have joined the Boku no Hero Academia fandom, however, so look forward to some new stuff for that! As some of you know I'm only really free summers so I'm going to write as much a freaking possible to tide you guys over during the rest of the year <3
> 
> Please visit me on [Twitter!](https://twitter.com/nutella0mutt) I only have 26 followers xD but that's where I'll be posting any updates or snippets. I'm not on tumblr much but you can still message me there if you'd like. 
> 
> I love each and every one of you (and I hope you join me in Todo/Baku/Kiri hell x3)


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